NEW DELHI, 9 Oct: Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana and Mizoram will go to polls on different days from 7-30 November, and votes will be counted for the five states on 3 December, the Election Commission of India (ECI) said on Monday, setting the stage for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Nearly 16 crore voters will be eligible to cast their votes in these elections, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar said at a press conference while asserting that strong measures are being put in place to make these polls inducement-free.
Voting for all 40 assembly seats in Mizoram will take place on 7 November, along with the first phase of polling for 20 seats in Chhattisgarh.
The remaining 70 seats in Chhattisgarh will go to polls on 17 November, alongside all 230 seats in Madhya Pradesh.
Voting for all 200 assembly seats in Rajasthan will take place on 23 November, while the 119-member Telangana assembly will be the last to go to polls on 30 November.
Counting of votes for all five states will take place on 3 December, CEC Kumar said.
This will be the last set of assembly elections ahead of the Lok Sabha polls next year.
While the Congress is in power in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh is ruled by the BJP, Telangana by the Bharat Rashtra Samithi, and Mizoram by the Mizo National Front (MNF).
Kumar said that these five states will have 1.77 lakh polling stations, of which 1.01 lakh will have webcasting facility.
“More than 8,000 polling stations will be managed by women,” he said.
“We have gathered here after a gap of six months. These elections are significant for the country and after this, we will meet for the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections,” Kumar said.
“We have met all stakeholders, including political parties and enforcement agencies, while preparing for the assembly elections in Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana,” he said.
The CEC said that the ECI has given a special emphasis on making electoral rolls inclusive and the focus will also be on “roll-to-poll,” or ensuring that all voters come to vote.
Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Mizoram will have 8.2 crore male and 7.8 crore female voters, while there will be 60.2 lakh first-time voters, he said.
For the first time, Kumar said, an ‘election seizure management system’ is being introduced for the assembly polls to enhance oversight to ensure inducement-free elections.
A total of 940 check posts have been put in place for strict vigil along the interstate borders and to dry up inflow of illicit liquor, cash, freebies and drugs, he said.
“There will be zero tolerance for the use of money power and there will be a strict vigil over suspicious online cash transfers through wallets as well,” the CEC said. (PTI)
